United States Rep. Trey Radel (R-Florida) pleaded guilty Wednesday morning in Washington, DC, to possession of cocaine, a misdemeanor, hours after it was reported that he had been arrested in the nation’s capital weeks earlier.

Radel, 37, was fined $250 and will serve a year of probation.

"I've hit a bottom," Radel said at District of Columbia
Superior Court early Wednesday, according to USA Today.

When it was reported on Tuesday that Radel had been charged for
the crime, he issued a statement of apology. “I'm profoundly
sorry to let down my family, particularly my wife and son, and
the people of Southwest Florida. I struggle with the disease of
alcoholism, and this led to an extremely irresponsible
choice,” he wrote. “As the father of a young son and a
husband to a loving wife, I need to get help so I can be a better
man for both of them.”

Radel was elected only last year to serve Florida’s nineteenth
district in the US Congress, but has nonetheless managed to make
a splash in the short time he’s spent representing a section of
the state that includes the cities of Fort Myers, Naples and Cape
Coral. Radel has been an outspoken critic of President Barack
Obama’s Affordable Care Act and has talked openly about the
interests he has that are rather rare for a politician — namely
rap music and poking fun of the SkyMall shopping catalog while
traveling by air. On Oct. 24 alone, he posted 13 photos to his
Twitter account of SkyMall products, complete with commentary.

According to the Associated Press, Radel was busted last month in
DC shortly after he purchased cocaine from a dealer who had been
in touch with law enforcement. Police had been investigating a
larger drug operation in DC when a source came forward and said
one of his clients was a member of Congress. That dealer arranged
to sell to Radel on Oct. 29, and shortly after the buy the
congressman was confronted by authorities at his local residence.

“Later that night, federal authorities went to his apartment
and informed him that he would be facing criminal charges related
to his purchase of cocaine,” the AP reported on Tuesday,
nearly one month after Radel was busted.

Radel quickly hired a defense attorney to negotiate charges, a
senior Drug Enforcement Administration official told USA Today,
and police never had handcuff Radel or take him to jail.

"Members of Congress should be held to the highest standards,
and the alleged crime will be handled by the courts,” House
Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) said in a statement. “Beyond
that, this is between Rep. Radel, his family, and his
constituents.”

The latest drug scandal to rock congressional politics in the US
comes in the midst of a similar one north of the border in Canada
that has been unable to escape headlines in recent weeks. There
in Toronto, Mayor Rob Ford has encountered a whirlwind of
criticism and calls to resign after he admitted to smoking crack
cocaine. Earlier this week, the Toronto City Council stripped
Ford of most of his mayoral powers. Radel has not yet indicated
plans for resignation, saying in a statement that he will enter
treatment.

If Radel had been arrested in Florida for cocaine possession and
not in the capital, he could have faced felony charges and would
have lost his right to vote if convicted. In DC, Radel stood
against a maximum sentence of 180 days and/or a fine of $1,000.

Reporters at CBS were quick to note that Radel is among the
cosponsors tied to H.R. 1695, or the Justice Safety Valve Act of
2013, which would give judges more flexibility with regards to
sentencing criminals in cases that involve mandatory minimums.